Attack of the Beast Creatures is a 1985 American horror film about shipwreck survivors who become the victims of the titular little monsters. Also known as Hell Island
Directed by Michael Stanley (Doing Agatha) from a screenplay written by Robert A. Hutton.
Reviews:
“Attack of the Beast Creatures may be slow going at first, with endless confused bickering between the various characters, but once the titular attack begins, the action becomes delirious and nonstop […] The hapless cast is forced to writhe and holler while dozens of ridiculous wooden dolls are thrown at them, and against all odds they manage to transcend the patently stupid special effects with their shrieks of panic and pain.” AllMovie
“Attack of the Beast Creatures is seems like it should have been made in the ’70s… I can’t even label this film “so-bad-it-is-good” because it is quite dull. Fast forward to acid bath and the monster attacks and skip the rest of Attack of the Beast Creatures… it isn’t worth it.” Basement Rejects
“The characters will leave you dumbfounded at their lameness. The attacks though, that’s where it’s at here pilgrims. Some gore, some laughs, some very bad acting during these intense, taut scenes. The twist ending will leave you spellbound and breathless, asleep if you’re too liberal with the beers.” Buried.com
“Most of the film consists of people running and screaming. And screaming and running. When they attack, they are clearly sewn or glued to the clothes of their victims. There’s one quiet moment when they worship an idol; it’s almost touching. then it’s back to running and screaming…” Down Among the “Z” Movies
“It’s silly, it’s badly made, and its creatures are laughable, but it is never boring and is full of the kind of enthusiasm and low-budget ambition that seem to be in such short supply these days. The Beast Creatures themselves–their origin and provenance, their connection to a Tiki culture thousands of nautical miles away, the idiosyncrasies of their inhospitable home island–are never explained…” Mad Mad Mad Mad Movies
” …what makes Attack of the Beast Creatures plummet down into the realm of the completely ridiculous is the introduction of the creatures. These look exactly like hordes of the Zuni fetish dolls out of Trilogy of Terror (1975) or perhaps even more so the evil doll out of Black Devil Doll from Hell (1984). They look ludicrous every time they appear and the cast gamely try to pretend to be attacked by them.” Moria
“Yes, it does have an unnecessary amount of walking scenes, but the movie has enough hysterically cheesy parts to compensate for it. Everything about it is equal parts atrocious and incredibly earnest, and 98% of the time, that’s a winning combination.” Obscure Cinema 101
“The monsters are nothing more than replicas of the Zuni Fetish Doll from Trilogy of Terror dyed red. There isn’t much effort on the filmmakers’ part to make them look anything more than puppets, aside from the one part where their eyes glow ominously in the dark. In some scenes, you can clearly see the puppeteers’ arms, but most of the time, they are thrown at the cast by a crew member from just off camera.” The Video Vacuum
A half-star extra for some of the cast members decent acting and the entertaing over-acting by some others plus the sheer audacity of trying to pull this daft project off on a zero budget. The synth score by John P. Mozzi is also typical of the time and fun.
Related:
BLACK DEVIL DOLL FROM HELL (1984) Reviews and overview
Cast and characters:
Robert Nolfi … John Trieste
Julia Rust … Cathy
Robert Lengyel … Case Quinn
Lisa Pak … Diane
Frank Murgalo … Philip
John Vichiola … Mr Morgan
Kay Bailey … Mrs Gordon
Frans Kal … Pat
Robert T. Firgelewski … Mr Bruin
Ronald Haupler Sr … First Sailor
Robert A. Hutton … Second Sailor
Joanne Stanley … Drowning Woman
Technical details:
1 hour 22 minutes
Filming locations:
Fairfield, Connecticut in 1983.
